Coal Town/Ghost Town

Living on Earth

What’s life like in Britain’s coal fields 15 years after Margaret Thatcher’s government declared war on the miners? We take you to Yorkshire, where the mine closings began, and profile Janet And Gary Hinchcliffe. The former miners say no one has stepped in to take the place of the mining industry, to supply a social fabric and conscience for the community. The residents don’t talk about “coal field” regeneration as the government proposes, but “managed decline,” in a town that sees little hope for the future.

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